Guinea's supreme court releases provisional list of presidential candidates

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CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — Guinea’s supreme court has released a provisional list of presidential candidates for the December election in the West African nation.

The court late Saturday approved a provisional list of nine candidates, including junta leader Gen. Mamadi Doumbouya, who is running as an independent. Two opposition candidates, former prime minister Lansana Kouyaté and former government minister Ousmane Kaba, were excluded on technical grounds.

The election is widely seen as an attempt by the junta leader to transition to a democratic government after a constitutional referendum that allowed the leader to run for president. Earlier this month, Doumbouya submitted his bid to run for president.

Despite Doumbouya’s promise to relinquish power when he overthrew Alpha Conde, he is expected to win the election slated for Dec. 28 and extend his stay in power for seven more years.

Guinea is one of a number of nations, including Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, that are currently ruled by military leaders who took power during a wave of coups that have rocked West Africa since 2020.

The credibility of the election has already been called into question by the exclusion of two of the country’s biggest opposition parties.

The election is coming after a one-year delay to the deadline agreed with the regional ECOWAS bloc to hold elections, which prompted calls by opposition parties to quit the country’s legislative body.